The US Department of Defense at the Pentagon has apologized to Turkey for an incident in which an American lieutenant colonel used a map showing 18 different cities in Turkey inside an area labeled "Kurdistan" during a seminar at the Rome-based NATO Defense College.

The incident took place September 15, and was followed this week by an apology via phone from the General Peter Pace of the US Armed Forces to the Turkish Chief of Staff, General Yasar Buyukanit. During the phone call, General Pace reportedly assured General Buyukanit that the map had no connection to the US. Pace's assurances however have now led to questions about who had prepared a map that showed a carved-up Turkey, and whether there might be other such maps in circulation. Turkey has in the meantime begun an operation to ensure that no other such maps are in use in NATO workings, and has started to send representatives to every meeting and seminar within NATO at which maps might be used.